BGR was a breath of fresh air…loved it!!!…Dionne Warwick selling 100 million albums back in the day (circa 1965)…Janelle, India Arie, lovely…Ciara’s performance was ok, not as good as her birthday performance on Jimmy Kimmel…I know she’s doing her signature moves…but, so did Janet and Michael throughout their careers…it’s the music, in my opinion that’s not awe-inspiring…Ciara has stepped up her live performance vocals for real…she has put in a lot of work!…I love “Sorry”…I think Ciara is doing a great job in inching her way back…just to have gained the traction that she has is huge…we are just overexposed as media consumers!

When Janet was doing it to the top…we had to wait on MTV and BET video segments…her HBO special, to see one of her legendary live concerts, i.e. “Velvet Rope”…an award show performance…no blogs, Youtube and cellphones with internet or at home…but with each album, the theme and the music was entirely different…not Janet taking what Sade, Whitney, Anita Baker or Mary J. Blige were doing…sex wasn’t selling the music…we were not colorstruck…we loved Sade and Vanessa Williams because of their talent, the music they made or acting…I don’t know what more Ciara could possibly do…so perhaps, she is finished for her old fans…she won’t appeal to all fans who knew her when…but, the ones who slay are beneath the radar…some Jill and Erykah fans only like their debut albums.

Miquel, Kem, Tamia, Faith Evans and Karyn White have some great R&B music out..John Legend and Ne-yo aren’t the hot artists as they started out…a lot of people are lovin’ Brandy’s new one…House Heads stick to what they know…Rihanna and Alicia bring a happy medium with their flava of music…Beyonce’s going POP/r&b next time out, I’m sure…as fans, we won’t always like everything an artist puts out,i.e., AK…but, I’m still an AK fan…So, perhaps Ciara will get that hot single, video and dance moves that will blaze…at 27, she’s still in the game, signed to a major label with LA Reid, no soft touch, getting booked on TV, getting some radio play and performs!

@ Cynthinia, you said everything I was thinking and then some! I agree, there’s nothing wrong with Ciara wishing to use her signature moves, and yes, her live vocals are MUCH IMPROVED! But at the end of the day, her background dancers and Missy both outshined her….not that she wasn’t good, but her energy wasn’t as high by herself and she didn’t command the stage as well as Mike or Janet can/could when they are on the stage all by themselves. YOu are soooo wise Cynthinia and as an aspiring artist myself, please believe I take a lot of your suggestions to heart. You should be in promotions or some part of the industry if your not already. Love all your comments!

Vee thanks! We make these artists, especially, when they’re not big “crossover” artists and it’s ok, if white people don’t buy it and we like it, we’re not all into Taylor Swift or Feist, I like both tho!

@Kourtney, you’re always so gracious, thank you! But, this was one performance and a matter of choreography, in my opinion. They could have staged the performance as less of a “dance crew” format and made Ciara the centerpiece…the Jimmy Kimmel performance was really strong in my opinion…hopefully, she’ll take your comment and others and retool!

I have worked in promotions in other fields, fashion, beauty and women’s empowerment (retreats). With music, it’s the same old thing…the “suits”…people who don’t make or know music, especially, urban music call all the shots…I wrote for an e-mag (2002 – 2006) and interviewed many artists and learned a lot, Amel Larrieux and Tweet were two of my favs…Amel says she doesn’t measure her success by others’ perception of success and realizes the value of her platform and the blessing to have achieved what she has and Tweet is a beautiful soul, a real ARTIST. So I don’t measure artists by one song or performance(s), but their body of work (Janet, Mariah, Toni Braxton, Mary J. Blige, Missy Elliot, AK and Beyonce)! Bottom line, whether Ciara or whomever, black music artists at large aren’t supported by us and therefore, “endangered”…lackluster sales hurt upcoming artists and less of us who will work in the industry! When was the last time they (the industry) broke a new black FEMALE artist superstar, not mega, but just a superstar (crossover or not)? Nicki Minaj, Azealia Banks is still rising, Chrisette, Melanie Fiona, Estelle don’t get the pub! I read the youtube and facebook comments on performances and some share your exact opinion and others enjoyed the performance, it wasn’t her best shine, that I agree with!